It wasn’t pretty but the Bulloch Academy Gators bounced back from their lone loss of the season as they knocked off Westfield 28-20 at Gator Alley to improve to 4-1 on the season.

Coming off the loss last Friday at John Milledge coach Aaron Phillips was concerned the Gators may come out flat. They started strong with an opening drive for a touchdown but had some mental and physical errors which cost them points throughout the contest.

“We were coming off a very emotional and physical game last week and I had the feeling we wouldn’t be as sharp as I would have liked,” Phillips said. “We are going to take this win over a good Westfield team, but it has been a hard five-game start for us. The effort was there and our guys played hard but there is plenty we have to clean up.”

In a game that featured a pair of Georgia Southern baseball commits and a pair of Eagle football commits, Gator quarterback Sam Hubbard was able to out duel Hornet signal caller Brock Johnson getting a little help from running back Connor Perry as well as he had three touchdowns and over 100 yards rushing.

“We know god things are going to happen when we get the ball in Sam and Connor’s hands,” Phillips said. “They make you look good as a coach. They do a lot of things we can’t teach. They are dynamic football players and are gritty and tough and very elusive with the ball in their hands.”

The Gators scored on their opening drive of the game as Perry broke free for a 23-yard run and then scored from 25-yards out. Case Woodrum’s extra point made it 7-0. The hornets answered as Johnson hit Stone St. Clair for a 17-yard touchdown tying the game at 7-7.

Sloppy play ensued as a Gator turnover on downs and Bulloch Academy fumble gave Westfield opportunities. They’d miss a pair of second quarter field goals and before the half Hubbard reeled off a 22-yard run and a 25-yard scramble into the end zone for a 14-7 Gator halftime lead.

The second half saw Perry burst through the middle on Bulloch Academy’s opening drive. He lowered his shoulder at the five-yard line and plowed over a couple of Hornet players to give the Gators a 21-7 lead.

Late in the third quarter Johnson capped a Hornet scoring drive with a two-yard run to cut the lead to 21-14. The Gators looked like they’d answered early in the fourth as Hubbard went 25-yards into the end zone but a holding call brough the ball back and they would fail on another fourth down attempt.

The defense got them the ball right back on a pivotal play as a bad exchange resulted in a fumble and Cohen Hendrix scooped up the loose ball. The Gators quickly turned that into points as Perry scored his third touchdown of the game on the first play following the fumble. Westfield added a late score but the Gators ran out the clock to improve to 4-1.

Up next Bulloch Academy will travel to Robert Toombs for a 7:30 kickoff Friday in Lyons.